Thursday, August 13, 2009

Match Report: 08/09: vs Twenty20 CC

Surprises come and go, the one that works towards a team’s success is the one that is most valuable. Something of this sorts happened in the game this past weekend as Twenty 20 CC paid a visit to the home of the Immortals in Cupertino. The stage was set, the equation pretty clear for the Immortals, win here, and move onto the next game to come one step closer for entering the Platinums, or lose here, and go back to healing your own wounds in the Gold cup.

The toss, rightfully won by our captain Darshil, saw us batting first on a friendly pitch and not-so-hostile surroundings, the ground being our home territory. The one and the only surprise that came in this clash, was the introduction of our impeccable player Nirmam into the top order, as he and Viral were sent to open the innings for us. Someone who was known for giving the bowlers a run for their money with some late hitting down the order when needed, it was a surprise to everyone to see Nirmam bat with sheer confidence, discipline and determination to make sure the Immortals were on their way to win this encounter. Having started slowly and steadily, he and Viral but up a good batting partnership to see off the new ball. With almost a run-a-ball scoring from Nirmam, the Immortals scoreboard kept on ticking.

With 3 quick wickets, and Nirmam holding up the other side of the pitch, Karan (SJSU) was sent in, and he went on to do business as soon as he joined his partner in crime. Three boundaries were scored between them, with 2 lofty shots over deep fine leg into the hard concrete by Nirmam, and one coming off the blade of Karan’s exquisite off side drives. All round contributions from other made the Immortals score look a respectable 79 for the loss of 7 wickets off their 20 overs. Nirmam scoring a brisk 28 off 34 balls and Karan giving support with his 27 ball 16.

Recently enough, a lot of drills has been done in the fielding and catching departments during the practice sessions, and this was just another day when that hard work was going to pay off. With Bhupesh bowling a fierce line and length the batsman from Twenty 20 CC were never allowed to settle in and within just a wink of an eye, Bhupesh ripped off the top order. A great catch, facing the sun, was held by Jaishal in the deep and set the tone for the Immortals. Bhupesh was at his prime best, as he took home 4 scalps off his 4 overs sending down one maiden and giving away a measle 9 runs. The highlight being a ball that just went through the air with such speed so as to rattle the batsman’s furniture, that it was hard not only for the players on the field to see, but it was hard to get a sight of it from the sidelines too. With Darshil bagging 2, and the rest of the bowlers hitting the deck in the right spots to earn 1 wicket each, the only glitch came when Ronak stumped the opposite team’s captain and that guy went ballistic with the umpire. The umpire after 15 minutes of facing the wrath from the captain, intended to walk away from the game out of frustration. The umpire’s aura continues with the Immortals – good or bad, as it has now become inevitable to find ourselves amidst some kind of issues with the umpires, come what may.

At the end the Immortals stepped up to the occasion, leaving no doubt, as winning was not the only goal, but winning with a huge margin was utmost important, if we were to find ourselves in some kind of a tie situation and for the DRR to come into effect. Twenty20 CC were uprooted for just 25 runs with 7 runs of it coming from extras. No batsman ever made it to double figures, and the Immortals could boast of helping their opposition to register 5 ducks.

ScorecardWith this great team performance, now comes an even bigger task as the Immortals face the Skiers11 this coming weekend in a do-or-die game. So stay tuned.